


Fireworks

by JustAndrea



Category: Mina and the Count
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-30
Updated: 2016-09-30
Packaged: 2018-08-18 15:57:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8167672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAndrea/pseuds/JustAndrea
Summary: Summer can be a pretty annoying time for vampires, but friends make it easier to deal with.





	

His mind was already awake, his near-ancient body practically begging to stretch outside of his coffin and start his evening already. But, every time he opened his eyes, he had to hold back a hiss at the bit of light he could still see through the space under his ‘bed’s’ lid. 

A groan echoed through the count’s crypt, but while anyone else might have shivered at the sound of it, the hunchback could only roll his eyes. “Yes yes, Master, I know,” he told him as he slowly shuffled around the room, closing the curtains as best he could, “Just a few more minutes…”

Once he had finished blocking out any remaining sunlight (though, despite his efforts, the room was still fairly lit. Annoying, but survivable), Igor opened his master’s coffin. Another low moan escaped from the vampire’s throat. “ _Fiiiiinally!_ ”

“Good evening to you too, Master,” Igor dryly retorted, offering the Count his usual glass of blood.

“Right, right…” Vlad grabbed it, almost immediately taking a couple sips, “Sorry, Igor. But you know how this season always aggravates me.”

Igor gave a groan of his own, crossing his arms. “Believe me, Master, I am right there with you. Honestly, why can’t more of these _humans_ live in the arctic?! Short days, long nights, cool air, high mortality rates-” A smile crossed his face, “Ahh, it would be a paradise for us!”

Vlad couldn’t help but smile a bit at the idea as well. “It would be nice not to have to deal with summer…” Just then, the sound of knocking was heard - a sound that made the Count’s smile widen while his comrade’s turned into a scowl. “But, there are _some_ good things about living in the suburbs. And speaking of vhich: Igor, the door?”

“Yes, Master,” Igor replied, barely holding back a sigh as he headed downstairs. As for the Count, he took a few moments to finish up his drink before stepping out of his ‘bed’ and heading downstairs - and as soon as he reached the bottom step, Mina ran over to him and hugged his ankles tightly.

“Good evening, Mina!” Vlad chuckled, actually managing to pry the little girl off his legs so he could hug her properly.

“Hiya, Count!” Mina replied, happily returning the hug. Igor gagged at the sight, but they either didn’t hear him or ignored him. 

“So,” the Count started to say as he looked down at his friend, “Vhat are ve planning on doing tonight, Mina?”

“Guess!” Mina said simply, grinning now.

Vlad tapped his chin in thought. “Hmmm… Hide and seek?” Mina shook her head. “Cards?” Another head shake. “A tea party?” Head shake. “Dolls?” Head shake.

This went on for what felt like forever, and after about twenty guesses, Igor had had enough. “Oh for the love of- Just tell us what it is!”

Vlad shot him a glare, but before he could say anything, Mina revealed her big surprise. “We’re going to watch the fireworks!”

The two monsters fell silent, and Vlad had to hold his grimace back. “Ohhh… Greaaaat. Yes, great idea, Mina!”

The girl immediately gave him another hug. “I knew you would love it! That’s why I asked my dad so many times if I could watch the fireworks with a friend instead of him and Lucy!” 

“Ah, vell, thank you for thinking of me, Mina,” he told her, patting her head. Though, as he did so, he caught the look Igor was giving him. Maybe he didn’t have the ability to read minds, but he still knew exactly what the hunchback was thinking: “You have got to stop risking your health for this _human_. Vampires may live forever, but only if they don’t make foolish decisions just for little girls.”

Of course Vlad knew that things like this and giving himself food poisoning were foolish - and he certainly knew that they weren’t enjoyable - but he didn’t care. So, after giving him one last glare, the Count looked back down at Mina. “Vell then, should ve head to the roof? It is the best seat in the castle, after all!”

“YEAH!” Mina jumped out of his arms, and with a _poof!_ the Count turned into a bat, easily catching Mina and carrying her up and out - with Mina “Weeeee!”-ing the whole time.

Igor sighed, shaking his head. “Guess I’ll go find the Master’s headache medicine…” He would definitely need it after tonight.

By the time they reached the roof, the sun was completely down - though it still wasn’t totally dark, but it would be soon enough. “Wowwww!” Mina said in awe, her eyes practically sparkling at the view, “You can see EVERYTHING from up here!”

Vlad nodded, a soft smile on his face. “Yes, it is the perfect vantage point. Look, you can even see your house!”

“Ooooh!” As she continued to enjoy the view, Vlad started to prepare himself for the view they would soon be seeing… Honestly, what was the point of fireworks anyway? 

Sure, they were somewhat pretty, he supposed, but they always gave off so much smoke! A bat could hardly see in all that, let alone breathe or fly! Not to mention the annoying little fact that humans always seemed to set off fireworks in the middle of the night! Sometimes they would set them off the _entire_ night! Honestly, who needed that many fireworks?! And then of course there was the noise… The scream of the rockets as they flew into the sky, followed by the booming explosion that would pierces his eardrums like a stake! And it wasn’t just one big boom and then a break, like with thunderstorms (and at least thunder was a pleasant and atmospheric boom!). No, it had to be constant! One after the other, booming, booming, booming-!

“Count?” Vlad blinked, and glanced over at the little girl - who was starting to look a bit concerned for her friend.

“Oh, uh, yes Mina?” he quickly replied, “I’m sorry, vhat vere you saying?”

Mina frowned. “I wasn’t saying anything. But you sorta look like how the cat looks before he runs off and hides under my bed.”

Despite himself, the Count gave a small chuckle at the analogy. “I am fine, Mina, don’t worry. …So, ah, vhen do these fireworks start again?”

Mina shrugged. “I don’t know! My dad always said that they have to wait until it’s really dark out before they can start shooting them all.” She took a moment to look around. It was definitely darker, and she could even see a couple stars out. “So, I guess they’ll be starting soon!”

“Ah… How vonderful…” Trying to keep his forced smile on his face, Vlad looked back out at the city and the dark forest that was laid out in front of him. 

Not having too much to say at that moment, Mina sat down next to him, moving her feet a bit as she waited silently. After a few minutes though, she did decide to speak up again. “Count?”

“Yes Mina?” Vlad asked, looking over at her.

“Can… Can fireworks hurt you? They’re sorta like light, and you get burned by light, so-”

“Ohh, Mina.” He placed a gentle hand on her back. “Thank you for your concern, but I assure you, vatching some fireworks will not put me in any danger!” Nothing life threatening, anyway.

The girl smiled for a moment, but then went back to frowning. “Well then, are you afraid of loud noises?”

“N- Well, not _afraid_ persay, but-” He paused, noticing the look she was giving him - the look that said she wouldn’t just take ‘I’ll be alright’ for an answer. Vlad gave a small sigh. “I am not afraid of loud noises but, vell… You know how I have stronger senses than you?”

“Yeahhh?” Mina said, nodding a bit.

“Vell, because I have stronger hearing, things like fireworks seem much louder to me.”

“So… When you hear fireworks, they hurt your ears,” the girl asked, her frown deepening.

“Ye- A-A little, but, I vill be fiiiine!” Vlad said quickly, “I have heard plenty of fireworks in my time, and I can hear just fine! One more display von’t do anything to-”

Before he could even finish his sentence, the sound of a rocket pierced the air, and before it even exploded, Vlad was clenching his fists and gritting his teeth, his eyes closed as tight as he could get them. Were they louder than usual?! Maybe this watching spot was a little TOO perfect…

“…” With a frown still on her face, Mina stood up. She grabbed the Count’s arm - and used it a foot hold to help her climb onto his shoulders.

The Count’s eyes shot open. “Huh?! Vh- Mina! Vhat are you- Ow! B-Be careful!” Vlad told her, wincing a bit as her heels dug into his shoulder blades slightly.

But Mina didn’t stop, or even explain what she was doing - not until she was in a comfortable spot on the Count’s shoulders. Once she was there, she used her hands to cover the vampire’s pointy ears. Vlad blinked. “Mina…?”

“You were going to watch the fireworks for me! So now, I’m going to do something for you!” she explained, taking a hand off one of his ears so he could hear her, “Now your ears won’t hurt!”

“Mina, that… That is very sweet of you but, I don’t think-” Another rocket was set off, and Mina put her hands back on the Count’s ears just in time for the explosion. And, to Vlad’s surprise, while he still flinched a bit, the sound was fairly muffled. “…Huh.”

Mina smiled proudly. “See!” she told him as she took a hand off again, “I knew it would work!”

Vlad chuckled. “I shouldn’t have expected any less from you, Mina!”

The display continued for several more minutes, but Mina’s hands never faltered. Even with his muffled hearing, Vlad could still hear her Oooh’s and Ahhh’s - something that always made him chuckle a bit, putting a smile on his face. She had so much wonder, not afraid of anything… A truly special girl, with some pretty special ideas.

“Thank you, Mina,” Vlad told her in-between the last few single fireworks were released, “Thank you for helping me enjoy this!”

Mina beamed, removing her hands for just a moment so she could hug his head. “You’re welcome! Fireworks are just so neat, I wanted you to see them! I wanted to watch them with my best friend.”

Vlad felt his heart warm - a feeling he was getting more and more used to the more time he spent with Mina, though he never got tired of it. “Mina…”

Oooh! Look! The finale’s starting! Look, look! This is the best part!”

“Oh!” He quickly turned his gaze back to the sky, and with nothing preventing him from enjoying them (even the smoke wasn’t too bad, given how far away they were from the display), Vlad’s eyes were stuck on the colored explosions in front of him. All the different shapes and sizes they were, how they all mixed together and made something unique, and how they just lit up the sky before falling to the earth like a group of rainbow-colored shooting stars… He had to admit, it was pretty ‘neat’. 

Maybe he would even be willing to watch them again sometime - just as long as he had his best friend by his side, of course.

**THE END**


End file.
